sjar Chapter 31 Su Peixue jumps into the river to save people
Chapter 31 Su Peixue jumps into the river to save people
Lin Ran paid the rent and deposit, then packed her black shirt and her wet clothes into a bag. Su Peixue, dressed in Hanfu, left the store.
The streets were getting busier. The night market had opened, with food stalls lining both sides of the street, brightly lit, and the aroma of cooking oil wafting through the air.
Lin Ran led her into the snack street.
The ground had changed from bluestone slabs to cement bricks, with oil stains in the cracks. Stalls lined up one after another, some with neon tubes bent into lettering, others just handwritten cardboard. Squid sizzled on the hot plate, the charcoal fire for grilling skewers flickered, and steam rose from a large pot of soup.
Lin Ran stopped in front of a rice noodle stall. The stall was small, with just a few folding tables and plastic stools. The owner was a woman in her fifties, wearing an apron stained with oil.
"Two bowls of tea oil rice noodles," Lin Ran said.
The rice noodles are cooked to order. The owner grabs a handful of rice noodles from a bamboo basket, throws them into boiling water, stirs them a few times with chopsticks, scoops them out, pours them into a bowl, drizzles on a spoonful of tea oil and a spoonful of sauce, and sprinkles on chopped green onions and crushed peanuts. The tea oil has a very unique flavor, with a delicate fragrance.
Su Peixue sat on a plastic stool, the hem of her Hanfu spread out, taking up half the stool's area. She carefully gathered the skirt, afraid it would drag on the ground and get oily.
The rice noodles were served, steaming hot. She picked up her chopsticks, took a bite, and put it in her mouth. The flavor of tea oil spread on her tongue, the rice noodles were smooth and chewy, and the crushed peanuts made a crunchy sound when she chewed them.
"Is it good?" Lin Ran asked.
Su Peixue had rice noodles in her mouth and couldn't speak, so she just nodded. Her cheeks were puffed out, and the silver hairpin swayed as she nodded.
After finishing the rice noodles, Lin Ran bought two bowls of sweet jelly. The translucent jelly was cut into cubes, topped with brown sugar syrup and hawthorn pieces, with raisins and peanuts at the bottom of the bowl. Su Peixue scooped up a piece with a spoon; the jelly trembled on the spoon, melted in her mouth, and was refreshingly cool.
She squinted. It was cold.
Emerging from the food street, the area ahead became even more bustling. People surged towards the riverbank, some saying they were going to witness the "iron flower" performance.
Lin Ran put his hands in his pockets and led Su Peixue toward the riverbank.
Several layers of people had already gathered along the riverbank. As they squeezed to the front, they could see several boats moored on the river, with people on board making preparations. The iron stoves were burning red-hot, and the firelight reflected on the river, turning that small patch of water orange-red.
it has started.
The people on the boat scooped up a ladle of molten iron with a long-handled wooden spoon, tossed it into the air, and then struck it hard with a wooden plank. The molten iron was scattered into countless tiny sparks, exploding in the air like an upside-down tree. Golden sparks shot out from the center in all directions, illuminating half of the river.
The second spoonful, the third spoonful. One spoonful after another, molten iron was continuously thrown into the air, golden sparks rising and falling. The sparks fell into the river water, hissed and went out, leaving a wisp of white steam.
The crowd applauded and cheered. Some people held up their phones to take pictures, the light from the screens glowing like fireflies in the darkness.
Su Peixue looked up. The golden light of the ironwork reflected on her face, turning her light blue jacket a warm hue, and the silver embroidery shimmered. Golden sparkles also danced in her pupils.
There are more and more people.
People behind pushed forward, while those beside them pushed towards the center. No one knew who stepped on whose foot; some were cursing, some were laughing, the sounds mingling together.
Lin Ran was about to take Su Peixue's hand when she saw that more and more people were gathering, but in the blink of an eye, Su Peixue had disappeared.
I rely on!
It was actually pushed aside by the crowd.
A wave of people surged in from the side, pushing Su Peixue two steps to the left and Lin Ran two steps to the right. Three or four people squeezed in, then it became seven or eight.
Su Peixue turned around to look for him, only to see a dark mass of heads.
She stood on tiptoe, but still couldn't see.
The sparks continued to fly. Another ladle of molten iron was tossed into the air, exploding and briefly illuminating the crowd with golden light. In that half-second of light, she scanned the crowd but didn't see him.
The crowd continued to surge. She was pushed forward, but after a few steps, she was pushed back. Someone stepped on the hem of her Hanfu skirt, and when she looked down, she saw half a gray shoe print on it.
Su Peixue didn't care.
She started walking towards a less crowded area. The edge of the crowd was downstream on the riverbank, where there was a row of willow trees, and fewer people were under them. She squeezed through the crowd, stood under a willow tree, and prepared to take out her phone to call Lin Ran.
Just as I reached into my sleeve to touch my phone, a muffled thud came from the river.
It wasn't the sound of sparks flying from iron. It was the sound of something heavy falling into the water.
Then someone screamed.
"Someone has fallen into the water!"
"It fell from the ship!"
"Oh my god, she looks like a pregnant woman!"
"Help! Someone save them!"
"Who can swim!"
"Does anyone know how to swim?"
Sounds surged in from all directions, sharp and deep, male and female, overlapping each other. The crowd shifted from watching the wrought iron fireworks to watching the fall into the water, all heads turned towards the river. Cell phone flashlights began shining onto the river, white beams of light flickering wildly, illuminating a patch of churning water.
Su Peixue saw it.
About ten meters from the shore, a person was struggling in the water. It was a woman, heavily pregnant, at least seven or eight months along. Her hands were flailing on the surface, her head bobbing up and down, her hair plastered to her face.
People on the nearby boat panicked. Someone threw a lifebuoy, but it missed and landed about two meters away from her. She couldn't reach it.
Su Peixue put her phone under the willow tree.
The Hanfu was rented. The deposit hasn't been refunded yet.
The thought flashed through my mind for half a second before disappearing.
She ran a couple of steps, kicked off her platform shoes and socks, and stepped barefoot onto the stone slabs. Then she leaped over the stone railing on the bank.
The light blue jacket spread out in the air, and the skirt looked like an upside-down flower.
The sound of it entering the water was not loud.
The water was cold. In the July night, the river water was cooler than the air. The chill spread from her ankles to her thighs, to her waist, and to her chest. Her Hanfu absorbed the water, suddenly becoming heavier and causing her to sag.
……
Su Peixue should be easy to find, because it's hard to find another girl with such high looks in the entire ancient city.
But all Lin Ran could see were the backs of heads; he couldn't make out any faces at all!
Lin Ran took out his phone and made a call.
I didn't answer.
So Lin Ran walked downstream along the riverbank. Downstream, there was a row of willow trees, and a few people were standing scattered under them. The light from the streetlights was broken by the willow branches, casting dappled patterns on the ground.
After walking about fifty meters, he saw a figure from behind.
Hanfu. Light blue. The outer garment is made of thin gauze, which shimmers with a faint blue light under the streetlights. Her hair is tied up and adorned with a silver hairpin. Her figure is also similar.
Lin Ran walked over quickly.
When they were two or three steps apart, he reached out and grabbed the girl's wrist.
The girl turned around.
It's not Su Peixue.
It was a familiar face.
Chen Leyao.
That top student at school. Ranked in the top ten of the grade, received scholarships, and won first place in a speech contest. She's no less beautiful than Ye Shixuan, but there's a condescending air about her in her eyes.
Lin Ran had previously asked her to borrow study materials, but she refused.
Chen Leyao glanced down at her wrist, which Lin Ran had just grabbed, then looked up at him again. Her brows furrowed, a hint of disgust in them.
"You're following me?"
???